[Uucf-bible] Response to John 3:1-17

[James D. Hamilton]

I know this thread was posted about a month ago--sorry for my lateness, but I just want to second Ron's recommendation of Borg's discussion, especially since I just recently re-read it for our local UUCF chapter's discussion group.  A few years ago in one of these forums, discussion of a similar passage from John ("the way, the truth and the life") came up and I argued for a mystical interpretation while another discussant dismissed this approach and argued solely for a purely historical understanding of the Johannine communty's exclusivism (anticipating Pagels' theory of Thomasite-Johannine rivalry). I think that is indeed a very important element of understanding John, but as one writer noted, a strictly historical-cultural perspective can render the gospel "a stale museum piece." I think Borg--who of course is very well versed in the historical-cultural context of the gospels--makes the case for understanding the mystical side of these passages much better than I ever
 could.
   
  On the dating of the Gospel of Thomas, Michael White, professor of religion here at UT-Austin, asserted in a lecture I attended that the original version of Thomas is probably as early as, if not earlier than, the synoptic gospels, although the expanded version we know now was probably compiled later than John.

  James
  James D. Hamilton
  Austin, Texas
  
RevRonRobinson at aol.com wrote:
  Great discussion y'all. Borg's Reading the Bible Again For the First Time 
has a good discussion of this passage and the "exclusionary" path from his point 
of view which mirrors much that has been said here. Bringing in Pagels and 
Thomas to John, it does depend a lot on the dating of the Gospel of Thomas 
doesn't it? My NT profs in seminary presented the dating controversy but tended 
to lend toward a later date, later than John's composition, as I recall. I 
can see it both ways pretty equally. 
blessings,
Ron
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